Marcli 23, 1872.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
763 
komm thinks they can scarcely he distinguished 
from those of A. Barrelieri, Bess., which he had ob¬ 
served in Spain. But in external appearance the 
two last-named species are widely different. 
Berg, in his ‘ Darstellung und Beschreibung der 
officinellen Gewachse,’ etc., 1863, plate xxix. c., having 
pointed out that the plant yielding wormseed was 
not known, had bestowed upon it the anticipatory 
name of A. Cina. Willkomm now maintains this 
name, but then Berg's name should be discarded, 
and the plant be .termed Artemisia Cina, Willk. 
(Berg.). Its full dia gnosis is as follows :— 
“ Suffruticosa, caudice crasso tortuoso, caulibus 
niultis basi lignosis, 3-5 decim. longis, basi foliatis, 
inde a medio ramulos permultos tioriferos erecto- 
patulos paniculam scopaeformem formantes edenti- 
bus; foliis basilaribus inferioribusque longe petio- 
latis bipinnatisectis arachnoideo-villosulis, mediis 
pinnatisectis floralibusque integris glaberrimis, seg- 
mentis omnium linearibus obtusis cartilagineo-mu- 
cronulatis, crassiusculis, margine revolutis et nervo 
medio crasso instructis; foliis basilaribus inferiori¬ 
busque turiones foliosos incano-tomentosos, superio- 
ribus foliorum fasciculos glabros ex axilla edentibus ; 
calatliiis numerosis secus ramulos laxe spicato-glome- 
ratis vel simpliciter spicatis, sessilibus erectis, versus 
anthesin 3 millim. longis oblongis, squamis glaber¬ 
rimis circiter 12 oblongo-linearibus obtusissimis valde 
concavis laxe imbricatis, late scarioso-marginatis, 
dorso vitta viridi in utraque pagina densissime glan- 
duloso-papillosa notatis; floribus 3-6 in squamarum 
summarum axilla sessilibus per paria dispositis, 
ovario obovato vix quartam corollas obconic* partem 
longitudine asquante, dentibus coroll* obtysis trian- 
gularibus tubo quadruplo brevioribus extus papillis 
resinosis crebris obsitis.” 
C00R0NGITE, OR MINERAL CAOUTCHOUC 
OE SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 
BY JOHN B. JACKSON, A.L.S., 
Curator of the Museums, Kew. 
About the end of the year 1865, or the beginning 
of 1866, a quantity of a peculiar substance was dis¬ 
covered on the surface of the ground in a part of 
South Australia known as the Coorong. The facts 
of tills discovery were communicated to the Colonial 
papers, and much correspondence ensued and vari¬ 
ous opinions were expressed as to the nature of the 
substance. It is found in a depressed portion of a 
sandy plain of some considerable extent, and is 
spread upon the ground chiefly near the edges of the 
depression. The substance is of various thicknesses 
up to, it is said, about one foot, and in colour and 
appearance much resembles india-rubber. It is, 
to a certain extent, elastic, and burns like caout¬ 
chouc, but without smell. At first it was thought to 
he a deposit of petroleum, and was called “ mineral 
caoutchouc,” “ coorongite ” and “ elaterite.” Great 
difference of opinion, however, existed amongst sci¬ 
entific men in the colony, as to whether it was a 
mineral or a vegetable production, and these opinions 
seem shared in by scientific men at home, for speci¬ 
mens having recently been received at Kew, were 
submitted to the Rev. M. J. Berkeley, who expressed 
an opinion as to its probable relationship with Pyre- 
nopsis, or some collemoid plant; chemists, on the 
other hand, believe it to be a land of mineral caout¬ 
chouc; and mineralogists, again, believe it to be of 
organic origin. In 1869, specimens of the substance 
were sent to Dr. A. J. Bernays, of St. Thomas’s Hos¬ 
pital, lor analysis, and the following is the report 
furnished at the time by that gentleman. “ The 
specimen looked exactl} r like the caoutchouc found 
in Derbyshire, near Castleton. The quantity found 
at Castleton is too small to be available for any use¬ 
ful purpose, but it has always excited great curiosity. 
The Australian sample is wonderfully rich in hydro¬ 
gen, and ought to be of use if found in anything like 
quantity. It contains no less than 97T5 per cent.. 
(97§) of volatile matter, and no more than T97 per 
cent, of ash. I have estimated the carbon and hy¬ 
drogen in the sample, and also drawn a distinction 
between volatile matter and fixed carbon. The ana¬ 
lysis may be stated as follows :— 
Per cent. 
“ Volatile matter .... 97T90 
Fixed carbon .... T005 
Ash .1-790 
99-985 
Loss. -015 
100-000 
“ The amount of actual moisture is very small,, 
only 0‘4682 per cent. Deducting this from the vola¬ 
tile matter, the analysis would stand thus:— 
Moisture. 
0-4682 
Carbon. 
64-7300 
Hydrogen. 
11-6300 
Ash. 
1-7900 
Fixed carbon .... 
1 0050 
Oxygen and other unes- 
timated matters . . 
20-3768 
100-0000 
“ Another analysis gives results:— 
“ Carbon.64’29 
Hydrogen .... 1T23 
“ These results are as good as can be expected. 
The analysis is very troublesome, and may require 
some, but slight correction. 
(Signed) “Albert James Bernays.” 
Thus, since 1869, we have made little or no pro¬ 
gress towards setting at rest its true origin. Several 
scientific men in the colony have interested them¬ 
selves in the matter, notably, a Mr. George Francis, 
whose name is associated with it from the very first; 
his description of its general appearance and pro¬ 
perties, as given in an Australian paper, is so accu¬ 
rate, that notwithstanding its length, we are tempted 
to quote it in its fulness. 
“ Appearance and colour resembling caoutchouc 
or cold stiff gelatinous glue. Fracture coarse and 
clieese-like, elastic to compression, soft, flexible and 
easily cut, clammy to the touch, yet does not soil 
the skin; odour faint, between a vegetable and an 
animal oil, with a slight smell of caoutchouc. In 
thin slips burns like a taper, melting before the 
flame, which is smoky. Specific gravity 0‘982 to 
0'990. Easily wetted by water, but insoluble therein. 
Translucent in thin sections; exhibiting under the 
microscope, especially if moistened with a solution 
of caustic potash or benzole, a granular and cellular 
structure with entangled fibres, resembling the fibres 
